Closed Doors: Jewish Asylum Seekers in the Shadow of Hitler
"We lived each day in the hope that we would somehow be rescued. We had the papers ready, the sponsors — but there was nowhere left to go."
— Gerda Weissmann Klein
As Adolf Hitler tightened his grip on Germany in the 1930s, Europe's Jews faced a terrible choice: stay and endure escalating violence, or risk everything to flee. For many, escape was a bureaucratic labyrinth — filled with hope, blocked by indifference, and often ending in tragedy.
By the time World War II engulfed the continent, for millions of Jews, it was simply too late.
The Gauntlet of Escape
Securing freedom was never as simple as packing a suitcase. Jewish families had to navigate a brutal gauntlet of:
Exit visas from Nazi authorities, often requiring heavy taxes and bribes.
Entry visas from reluctant foreign governments.
Transit visas to travel through third countries.
Every document meant another hurdle. Every day meant another tightening of borders.
"The world closed its doors to us. We were not wanted anywhere."
— Eva Schloss, Holocaust survivor
Who Opened Their Doors?
Against impossible odds, some managed to find refuge:
United States: Accepted around 200,000 Jewish refugees but left strict quotas largely untouched.
United Kingdom: Opened its doors to 80,000 Jews, including 10,000 children rescued via the Kindertransport.
Shanghai: A rare sanctuary without visa requirements, welcoming around 20,000 Jews.
Sweden: Saved 8,000 Danish Jews in a daring rescue in 1943.
Meanwhile, British-controlled Palestine received about 70,000 Jewish immigrants legally — though many more came illegally on dangerous sea voyages.
Who Turned Them Away?
Despite widespread knowledge of Nazi atrocities, most of the world turned a blind eye:
At the Évian Conference in 1938, 32 nations expressed "sympathy" — but few accepted refugees.
Canada admitted fewer than 5,000 Jewish refugees during the Holocaust. ("None is too many," said one immigration official.)
Australia accepted a small number, declaring bluntly, "We do not wish to import a racial problem."
The United States denied entry to ships like the MS St. Louis, sending hundreds back to their deaths.
The message to Europe’s Jews was clear: You are on your own.
Survivors' Voices
Anne and Margot Frank
In Amsterdam, Otto Frank tried desperately to obtain visas to the U.S. or Cuba for his family. Bureaucratic red tape and Nazi invasion crushed those dreams. Forced into hiding, Anne Frank's diary became the enduring voice of a lost generation.
"I can shake off everything as I write; my sorrows disappear, my courage is reborn."
— Anne Frank
Gerda Weissmann Klein
Trapped in Poland after missed opportunities for asylum, Gerda endured slave labor and a death march. Her entire family was killed.
Eva Schloss
Eva and her family fled Austria, hoping to find safety in Belgium and the Netherlands. Betrayed to the Nazis, they were sent to Auschwitz. Only Eva and her mother survived.
The Cost of Closed Borders
Pre-war Europe had 9.5 million Jews.
The Holocaust claimed six million lives — two-thirds of the continent's Jewish population.
In Poland alone, 91% of Jews were murdered.
Country Pre-War Jewish Population Murdered Percent Killed Poland 3.3 million 3 million ~91% Germany/Austria 525,000 210,000 ~40% Hungary 825,000 560,000 ~68% Netherlands 140,000 100,000 ~71% France 330,000 77,000 ~23%
Millions had sought to flee. Millions were denied. Millions perished.
"We were unwanted, unloved, abandoned."
— An anonymous refugee testimony, 1939
Today, the closed doors of the 1930s and 1940s serve as a haunting reminder: apathy and nationalism can be deadly partners.
When humanity chooses walls over compassion, the cost is written not just in history books — but in names, faces, and lives extinguished forever.